


Fenced In and Broken

by kaleidomusings



Category: Captain America (Movies)
Genre: Body Modification, Canon-Typical Violence, Human Experimentation, Hydra (Marvel), M/M, Mind Control
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-06
Updated: 2015-12-01
Packaged: 2018-03-29 06:53:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,171
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3886528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaleidomusings/pseuds/kaleidomusings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam knew something was wrong even before he opened his eyes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is written for the "mind control" prompt on my trope bingo card and is heavily based on an Ella Enchanted kind of forced obedience, Hydra style.

Sam knew something was wrong even before he opened his eyes. 

He blinked hard at the blinding light above him, feeling sick and disorientated. He tried to sit up from the hard cot beneath him, but every part of his body felt like it was on fire. And then he realized his arms and legs were strapped down before remembering the failed mission, losing sight of Steve, and falling into Hydra's trap. 

"Oh, good. You're alive," said a voice as a shadow fell over him. An older woman, judging by the sound of it. Sam blinked harder, but could only vaguely make out a face. He flinched when she placed a thin hand on his forehead that might have been a comforting gesture from anyone else, but just made him feel like vomiting. "We were starting to think it was all a waste, having the test subject die on us like that. But thankfully we got your heart started again."

 _Test subject,_ like he was a lab rat instead of an actual human being. "What did you do to me?" he asked. Or tried to anyway. His throat was too raw from screaming to form actual words. 

But the woman was already turning away to speak with a man, who responded with a thick European accent Sam wasn't lucid enough to make out. He struggled against his restraints, even knowing he was too weak to free himself, but having to try anyway. 

"Stop that," the woman snapped, already coming over to his side again. His vision had cleared up a bit, so he could make out blond hair and a thin mouth twisted down into a frown. 

Sam was already opening his mouth to snap back, his aching throat be damned, when there was a loud buzzing in his head. And it _hurt_ , like he was being electrocuted from the inside of his skull. When it finally stopped, he slumped back on the table, catching his breath. 

"It seems to be working," said the man with the accent. He had dark hair and a thick beard that Sam wanted to tear off with his bare hands. "State your full name."

 _Pretty sure you know my name already_ , Sam wanted to say. But there was the buzzing again and the pain made him blurt out, "Samuel Thomas Wilson."

The woman was muttering under her breath as she touched his throat, felt his racing pulse under her fingertips. She smiled before moving to undo the straps holding him down and whispered in his ear, "Kill every person in this room and do not stop until I tell you to."

"What are you doing?" the man demanded. 

He rose from the cot slowly, taking note of the other four people in the room besides the woman. His _handler_. The man with the accent was screaming, shouting orders at him, but there was that painful electric buzzing in his head that blocked everything else out. Because she ordered him to kill everyone until she said to stop. 

So he didn't stop. 

\--

Sam stood over the pile of bodies, his face and hands covered with blood, and flinched when the woman placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. 

"You did well," she said. Like that was somehow a comfort. 

Suddenly furious, Sam twisted around and grabbed her by the collar of her white labcoat. A test subject, she had called him. "What have you done to me?" 

"Let go and sit down," the woman snapped at him. Sam's body moved to do as it was told and she smiled. "I made you better. The perfect soldier."

Before Sam could respond, the door of his cell flew open. It tore clean off its hinges and struck the woman, knocking her into the far wall. Sam glanced at the doorway to see the Winter Soldier and Steve standing there. He saw the Winter Soldier -Bucky, he reminded himself- glance around the room with cold, assessing eyes. But then he glanced at Steve and really wished he hadn't. Steve was staring at the bodies and Sam, like he was at a total loss. 

"Sam…"

"Can you stand?" Bucky stood in front of him, momentarily blocking Steve from view, and Sam was thankful for that. The last thing he wanted was to see the horror and disappointment in Steve's eyes. 

Bucky held out his hand and Sam almost took it before pausing, the sight of the blood on his fingers making him feel sick. He started to shrink away, but Bucky caught hold of him and helped him off the cot. Even when his knees started to buckle, Bucky immediately hooked Sam's arm around his neck and held him up with the metal arm around his waist. And Sam could do little else than lean against him gratefully, feeling as weak as a newborn.

Steve was checking the bodies for any sign of life until he knelt by the woman. "She's still breathing," he said. 

"We need to question her," Sam rasped out. He may not know what they did to him, but she would. And he needed answers. He needed answers _now_. 

Steve nodded and hoisted the unconscious woman over his shoulder. "Come on. Let's get out of here," he said.

It wasn't a command, but Sam's body heard it as one and struggled to carry it out, weak though he was. He slumped against Bucky, his head feeling like it was going to explode with all the buzzing. He felt his fingers tighten against Bucky's arms as he bit his lip hard to keep from screaming. 

Steve's eyes were wide. "Sam?"

He choked on the taste of blood in his mouth, until strong hands held his face up and he could almost make out Bucky with his blurred vision. "You need to sleep," he said fiercely.   

Sam waited for the buzzing, but the pain didn't come. There was just a faint hum that had him falling against Bucky before everything went dark.


	2. Chapter 2

The taste of blood still lingered in his mouth when Sam woke up again. 

He felt like he'd been thrown into a meat grinder and had to take a minute to keep from throwing up as a wave of nausea hit him. The lights shining overhead weren't helping either, although his heart stopped trying to burst out of his chest once he realized Helen Cho was standing over his bed. 

"Hey," she said softly. 

Sam was so relieved to see a familiar face instead of a psychotic HYDRA scientist that tears blurred his vision. The hand holding his squeezed his fingers and he looked up to see Bucky sitting at his side. Motionless, like a ghost. 

"He refused to leave your side," Helen said. "Steve wanted to be here too, but he was called away."

Probably to interrogate that woman. Not that Steve did much of the interrogating. Natasha was the expert after all. But Steve could be intimidating when he wanted to be and HYDRA always brought out a darker, angrier side of him. Sam glanced at Bucky, who hadn't looked away, but seemed a little embarrassed under the scrutiny. A part of him wondered why Bucky hadn't gone with Steve, but he was grateful that he hadn't. He was glad Bucky was there, so he wouldn't have to deal with this alone. "Thanks," he told him, squeezing his hand right back. 

Bucky frowned, as if he found Sam's gratitude confusing, but nodded. He also didn't let go of Sam's hand, even when Helen needed to check his vitals. He just helped him sit up and watched the entire procedure intently. Sam thought Helen might be bothered by the obstacle Bucky proved to be while she worked, but instead spoke to him pleasantly and explained everything she was doing, as if overprotective super soldiers were the norm. Maybe they were. 

Granted, Sam didn't know much of Helen before officially joining the Avengers, but from what he could tell so far he liked her. She was smart, beautiful, and Steve told him all about the sacrifice she made to try stopping Ultron. It was hard not to respect a person like that. 

Even Bucky seemed to like her, and Bucky didn't like much of anything besides Steve. It had taken Bucky quite some time to just warm up to Sam, and longer still for Natasha to be in the same room when Steve was around. But the more Bucky opened up to others, the more Sam saw the shadow of the man he used to be. A man who liked watching musicals and science documentaries, whose greatest weakness was desserts, and who still saw Steve as someone to protect from his own recklessness. He was a man who gradually stopped being Barnes, and was just plain old Bucky. 

A shot of pain cut off his thoughts, and Sam winced. Both Helen and Bucky immediately stilled. "Did I hurt you?" she asked. 

"My head," Sam started, trying not to pay attention to the way Bucky stiffened beside him. "What did they do to me…?"

Helen's mouth twisted, apologetic and unhappy as she gently touched his shoulder. "I've been told not to tell you that."

Sam stared at her, incredulous, because _what_? "It's my body. I think I'm allowed to know."

Helen nodded and handed him a tablet. "That's why I'm probably going to get in trouble for this, but I also believe you deserve to know what's going on. Just try not to freak out over what I'm about to tell you."

"No promises," Sam said dryly, before he could help himself. There was a faint humming in his head, but it didn't hurt. Just uncomfortable. 

Bucky made a sound that sounded suspiciously like a snort at his response, but feigned nonchalance when Sam glanced his way. 

Helen smiled, before her expression turned somber. Almost furious. "It's an atrocity what HYDRA did. It goes against everything it means to be a doctor." Then she went on to explain that they wanted to make the perfect soldier, one that follows every command, so they implanted millions of tiny nanobots into his brain. They had small amounts of intelligence, able to differentiate command words and literally electrocute Sam's brain until he followed them. And they were made of the same material used for Bucky's metal arm. Which meant that, while they weren't indestructible, needed considerable firepower to destroy. But doing anything so close to Sam's brain would be dangerous, maybe even kill him. 

"We would like to keep you under observation until we're able to figure out a way to disable and remove them," Helen said. "Or until they get the scientist you brought back to talk."

She turned on the tablet for him then, showing him pictures of the nanobots, and Sam nearly threw up at the sight of them. They looked like tiny spiders, gleaming silver and clustered around Sam's brain.

The tablet fell from his suddenly numb fingers and Sam lurched off the bed, trying to get away from this nightmare. Bucky reached for him, but he twisted away from his hands. They both knew that Bucky could easily pin Sam on the bed if he wanted to. But there was a pained look in his eyes as he watched Sam. Like he understood what it was like to be used like someone's horrific science experiment. And that, more than anything, sucked the fight right out of Sam and he leaned back against the wall, his shoulders shaking. 

"Steve is going to find a way to make this right," Bucky said. Sam almost laughed at Bucky's sudden optimism, but it occurred to him that Bucky knew better than anyone the lengths Steve would go to save his friends. Maybe Bucky's statement wasn't completely unfounded. But he was still scared. He didn't want to be someone else's tool to hurt and kill people, just because they told him to. He didn't want to live like this.

He glanced at Helen, who had her hands covering her mouth, looking regretful by what she told him. It made him feel guilty, but he needed to know and he was glad he could hear it from someone he trusted. Still, he didn't think saying so would make her feel better, so he limped back over to the bed. But Bucky startled him when he hauled Sam in close and wrapped his arms around him. 

His cheek pressed against Bucky's metal shoulder, which was strangely warm. Almost like it was a real arm. It felt a little unusual to be hugged by the person who avoided physical contact as much as Bucky did, but it did help keep him grounded and in the moment. Sam found himself reaching out and clutching the back of Bucky's shirt tightly as he hugged him back. 

Suddenly the door Helen's lab opened and Steve appeared in the doorway. The corner of his mouth twitched as he took in the sight, almost like he wanted to smile, before it disappeared. "We need to talk," he said.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading. Feel free to leave kudos or comments. I'd love to get feedback from all of you.


End file.
